Batman Recommended Reading
Batman is one of the oldest and greatest super-heroes in existence, along with his supporting cast having been handled by more writers and artists than probably any other comic book character throughout history. His mythos has been adapted into many different settings and genres and even time periods. There are many different sides to the character and interpretations of his personality and motivations. Having been published since in 1939, it can be difficult to figure out where to start with Batman... this is a guide on which stories are good for readers unfamiliar to the character, and provides recommendations on great stories for experienced readers as well. New readers * Batman: The Dark Knight Returns is Frank Miller's 1986 classic, an epic story set in a future where Bruce Wayne has long since retired, and triumphantly returns to the cowl in a new era that needs him more than ever and refuses to tolerate his attitude and presence. * Batman: Dark Moon Rising is a two-part story written and illustrated by Matt Wagner about Batman's first confrontations with supernatural crime and horror, taking place in his first year as the caped crusader. Batman and the Monster Men introduces mad scientist Hugo Strange and his creatures, Batman and the Mad Monk has him fight an ancient vampire. * Batman: Hush is a modern classic written by Jeph Loeb with artwork by Jim Lee, a conspiracy involving almost every member of Gotham's rogues, designed to strike at the heart of Bruce Wayne by a mysterious new enemy known as Hush. * Batman: The Long Halloween is a story by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale set in Batman's earliest years, dealing with the change in Gotham's underworld from organized crime to costumed freaks and his earliest alliances in the war on crime, revolving around the search for a holiday-themed serial killer. * Batman: The Man Who Laughs is Ed Brubaker and Doug Mahnke's one-shot graphic novel featuring Batman's first meeting with his greatest nemesis, the Joker. * Batman: Year One is the definitive origin story, written by Frank Miller with artwork by Dave Mazzucchelli. Further reading * Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth is a graphic novel by Grant Morrison and Dave McKean depicting a more ethereal and cerebral interpretation of Batman, taking a look into his psyche when Arkham Asylum is taken over by its inmates. * Arkham Asylum: Living Hell is a six-issue miniseries dealing with the characters and environment of Arkham Asylum, introducing Great White Shark as a man imprisoned there on a technicality who is slowly driven insane by the other inmates until he emerges into a new super-villain. The background is a chilling supernatural thriller, with only several appearances by the actual Batman family. * Batgirl: Year One is the definitive origin story of Barbara Gordon as Batgirl. * Batman: A Death in the Family is the classic story of Batman's greatest failure, the tragedy of Robin's at the Joker's hands. The four-part story by Jim Starlin with artwork by Jim Aparo was ground-breaking with its depiction of the brutal death of a popular character. * Batman: A Lonely Place of Dying is the introductory arc of Tim Drake becoming the third Robin after the death of Jason Todd, discovering Batman's secret identity through his own detective work and fighting Two-Face for the first time. * Batman: Battle for the Cowl is a story that takes place immediately after the disappearance of Bruce Wayne during Final Crisis, as Gotham City erupts in a massive crime-wave organized by the new Black Mask and the city's heroes struggle against each other to determine who is most worthy to continue the Batman legacy. * Batman: Black and White is a collection of short stories written and illustrated by top talent from across the industry, told entirely in black and white to showcase the artistic talent. * Batman: Blind Justice * Batman: Broken City * Batman: Cacophony * Batman: Cataclysm is the story of a massive earthquake destroying Gotham City, with crossovers in every ongoing Batman volume leading directly into No Man's Land. The dark knight is pushed to his limits by the natural disaster, exhausting himself to save every life possible from a villain he cannot fight while everything he's ever worked for crumbles down around him. * Batman: Child of Dreams is a beautiful Batman graphic novel originally published as a manga series by Japanese artist Kia Asamiya, with the caped crusader fighting in Tokyo against a lethal shape-shifting drug. * Batman: City of Crime * Batman: Contagion * Batman: The Cult * Batman: Dark Detective * Batman: Dark Knight, Dark City * Batman: Dark Victory is the sequel to The Long Halloween, a second maxi-series by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale. The story revolves around a new serial killer in Gotham named the Hangman murdering police officers, and takes place during the introduction of Robin. * Batman: Face the Face * Batman: Gotham by Gaslight * Batman: Gotham Underground * Batman: Gothic * Batman: Haunted Knight * Batman: Joker's Asylum * Batman: The Killing Joke * Batman: Knightfall is a massive trilogy featuring Batman's ultimate defeat at the hands of Bane, the rise of Azrael as the new Batman, and ending with the triumphant return of Bruce Wayne. * Batman: The Last Arkham * Batman: No Man's Land * Batman: Officer Down * Batman: Red Rain * Batman: Rules of Engagement * Batman: Son of the Demon * Batman: Strange Apparitions * Batman: Tales of the Demon * Batman: Ten Nights of the Beast * Batman: Thrillkiller * Batman: Turning Points * Batman: Under the Hood * Batman: Venom is a memorable five-part storyline by Dennis O'Neil where Batman struggles with his human limitations after failing to save a young girl, and becomes reliant on super-steroids that briefly turn him into a broken drug addict. * Batman: War Games * Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? is Neil Gaiman's meta-fictional take on the death of the character, paying tribute to every era of his publication at the dark knight's funeral. * Batman: Year 100 * Batman and Son is the beginning of Grant Morrison's run on the character, a four-part story where Batman must fight the League of Assassins while dealing with the revelation that he had a son with Talia al Ghul named Damian Wayne. * Batman R.I.P. * Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood * Bruce Wayne: Fugitive * Catwoman: When in Rome * Huntress: Year One * JLA: Tower of Babel * Joker * Many Deaths of the Batman * The OMAC Project * Two-Face: Year One * Untold Legend of the Batman is the definitive Pre-Crisis origin story on the character. Single issues * Batman: Ego * Batman: Mad Love * -- Joker's Five Way Revenge * -- Time and the Batman * -- Mortal Clay * * -- The Player on the Other Side * -- The Case of the Chemical Syndicate * -- There is No Hope in Crime Alley * -- Fool's Errand * -- Mimsy were the Borogoves * Secret Origins Special #1 -- Original Sins Category:Batman